Twenty Years Later
by White Fairy Writer
Summary: It's been 20 years since the kids went their seperate ways. Miko returned to Japan, Raf moved to D.C., and Jack moved away to Europe. Everyone lost touch, and their friendship waned. But a promise to return will bring them back together again.
1. Twenty Years Later

_**I own nothing of Transformers Prime. This is for pure fun and enjoyment for those who read it.**_

"La, la, la." A woman was singing as she packed her suitcase. The woman was in her mid thirties, with pure black hair and bright hazel eyes. The woman was tall and thin, with a continual smile on her face. _It has been such a _long_ time, I wonder how everyone's doing? _She thought with a smile.

"Mama! Mama! Souta's being mean to me! He won't give me my toy back!" A little boy cried running into her room. He looked like his mom with his hair and eyes, and looked to be around three or four years old.

"Oh no. What did Souta do this time, Haru?" The woman cooed, pulling the little boy into her arms as she sat on the bed by her pink suitcase.

"He-He took my toy! He took my doggie!" Haru cried, burying his face in her mom's shirt.

"Well, let's go fix that." The lady smiled, putting her son on her hip as she stood up. "Souta! Come here please!" She called out as she went down the stairs. Her other son saw her come down the stairs, and hid in the living room. "Souta, come out, come out where ever you are!" She sing songed, pretending she didn't know where her older boy was hiding. "Where do you think Souta is?" She asked Haru with a smile, and the little boy blinked at her while he sucked his thumb. "Well how about we go this way?" She asked, heading into the living room. "Souta, are you in here?" She called out, and watched her other son hide behind the sofa. "Oh there you are!" She cooed, and Souta came to stand in front of her with his hands behind his back and eyes staring at the floor sullenly.

"Mama." He said.

"Did you take Haru's toy?" She asked with mock solemnity of the five year old.

"Y-Yes." He said quietly.

"Are you going to give it back?" She asked with a motherly look, setting Haru down in front of Souta.

"Yes." He said sullenly, and pulled a stuffed dog out from behind his back.

"Doggie!" Haru cried happily taking the dog and hugging it to his chest before running off happily.

"You that wasn't nice, Souta." The mother said calmly. "Why did you do it? You have your own doggie."

"I wanted it." Souta said simply.

"Remember, you can't take what isn't yours. That isn't nice. Now go play with your brother, okay? Mama has to finish packing."

"Yes Mama." Souta said, and ran after his brother.

"Ah there you are sweetie." A new voice said, and the woman was enfolded in a hug.

"Hey Eri, how was work today?" She smiled, turning around to kiss her husband.

"The usual. This research project is becoming harder and harder. And you?"

"The band's still number one on the charts." The wife grinned, happy the rock band she had been managing for the past five years was still the best. The couple lived in Japan, and their lives were happy ones. Two sons, wonderful jobs, great friends. But still, the band manager mother had a promise to keep.

"Do you have to go, Miko?" Eri asked quietly that night, watching his wife finish packing her suitcase.

"I have to silly!" She laughed, folding a pair of jeans. "My friends and I promised to meet again in twenty years, I just have to keep my end of the bargain. Besides it's just a few days, I'm not running away you know." She joked, kissing him lightly as she placed her suitcase by the door. She was heading out in the morning, and happy of it.  
>~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ <p>

"Marcus, did you finish recalibrating the-"

"Mr. Esquivel, with all due respect, I finished that hard drive last night. Chill out sir, it's operational, it's online, and the information packets patched through perfectly."

"I know, but-"

"Sir, you deserve a time off. Without your help none of this would be here!" The technician laughed, motioning to the lab they were in. Rafael Esquivel sighed rubbing his forehead. His hair was a light brown, and a pair of red glasses sat on his nose. He wore a white lab coat with a shield on the pocket, and the clothes underneath it were wrinkled and messy. He was the leader and creator of Protectia, a research lab government funded that did absolutely everything from cracking codes to manufacturing technology to creating military software to hack into enemy computers and everything in between. "You need to take a break, sir. Go home, and you said yourself your wife is pregnant. You're stressing yourself out, sir. Please go home?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You're probably right." Raf grumbled. "I should go home." He sighed, and then something seemed to click in his brain. "Marcus what's the date?" He demanded urgently.

"The 23 of April. Why? Something due tomorrow?"

"The _23_? That only gives me two days!" He cried in shock. How had the date escaped his notice? How could he forget his promise?

"Sir?" Marcus questioned.

"Get me a plane ticket! I need one to Jasper, Nevada! Hurry up!" He shouted over his shoulder as he threw his lab coat into his office. "What are you sitting around for? Get that ticket for me! You're absolutely right, I need time off. As my own boss, I'm giving myself the week off. Tell Mr. Octavian he's in charge for the rest of the week. Wait, Octavian _is_ my second in command, right? Or is it Bansi? Whoever it is, get them in charge, okay? I need to go home and pack. Make _sure_ that ticket is on my front door in the morning or you're fired!" He called as he raced out of the building. Five seconds later he ran right back in. "Oh, and call Agent Fowler and tell him I need to borrow a 'coptor. Tell him to leave it in the Jasper Desert, okay? I'll meet him there in two days, you got that?" And once again Raf raced out of the building and to the waiting Camaro.

"Hey Raf, how was work?" The car beeped.

"I can't believe I forgot!" Raf cried as he buckled up and the car pulled out. Since Protectia worked for the government, Agent Fowler had pulled a few strings and let the duo stay together over the past twenty years. In some ways it was a good thing, you never lose your best friend and, well, technically your first car, but at the same time, it was saddening. Things weren't the same. Jack and Miko and him had all gone their own ways. Bee had come with him to Washington, D.C. while Miko had returned to Japan and Jack had moved off to Europe. Only Raf had been able to keep his guardian and Autobot, and while that was great, things just weren't the same.

"Forgot what?" Bee asked carefully as he drove onto the highway. The last time his friend had said those words, Raf's latest experiment had blown up because he had forgotten a key stabilizing ingredient. This time, Raf didn't look like something had gone boom, but you never could tell.

"My promise! I _forgot_! I can't believe this!" He groaned.

"What promise? What did you forget about?" Bumblebee beeped, looking at Raf curiously.

"We promised we'd meet up again." He said softly, a smile playing on his lips. "After twenty years." He whispered, shaking his head with a smile. "Twenty years." He repeated, slightly shocked.

"Who promised?" Bee asked confused.

"I'm gonna be leaving you here with May, okay? Watch over her while I'm gone, alright? She's so sweet, I don't want anything to happen to her. Especially since she's pregnant, now. She's already trying to figure out a name. It's a girl, did I tell you that? Mary's thinking about the names Olivia, Nina, or Daphne. What do you think? I want Emilia, it sounds so pretty, or Serena. But it looks like it's going to be Daphne." He said, avoiding the question. They had promised, it was just them. And then maybe surprise everyone.

"They're all pretty." Bumblebee replied, happy for his friend.

"I'm so happy about this! I'm going to be a father soon!" He said happily, and Bee turned into his partner's driveway. "Well, I'm going to the airport in the morning, so you don't need to worry about picking me up. Okay? Bye." He said simply and went into the small ranch styled house.

"Raf, is that you?" A bright voice called, and a short petite woman stuck her head out of the kitchen. Bright blond hair framed the woman's face, bright green eyes peered out from a tan face, and her customary red apron was around her waist. "It is you, come here! Come here! I've been experimenting again." She said sheepishly.

"What is it this time? A suicide from chocolate again or one of your amazing entrees?" He grinned kissing his wife. Mary Esquivel was a cooking genius. Her desserts were to die for, her main courses better than a royal chef's, and her drinks were the best you could ever have.

"An entree, it's a French one. I got the recipe from Luisa when she came back from Paris." Mary replied, and inhaled the aroma of her cuisine. "I think I did something wrong though." She coughed, and the smell of something burned entered Raf's nose.

"Yeah, I think you might've." He coughed.

"Oh well, I _really_ wanted to make you something different." Mary sighed, throwing whatever the dinner had been away.

"You always make the best, sweet heart. I have to tell you something." He began, and Mary looked at him questioningly. "I need to go to Jasper for a few days, do you think you'll be alright if I go?"

"Sweetie, I don't live and die by your being her or not. I'll be fine. What do you need to go for? Business?"

"Ah, sort of. I made a promise to a few friends twenty years ago. We all promised to meet up again."

"You forgot about it didn't you?" Mary laughed. "You better go pack then, I'm guessing Marcus is getting your plane ticket?" Raf nodded. "Okay then, I'll have perfected me French cuisine by the time you get back." Mary grinned.

"Promise you won't burn down the house?" Raf asked carefully, only to be rewarded by a giggle from his wife.

"I make no promises."

"Oh good grief." He groaned, and went to pack.

"Good morning sleepy head." A voice said quietly, and Jack opened his eyes to find Sierra standing over him with a cup of coffee.

"Oh hey. Did I sleep in?" He asked guiltily, sitting in.

"Kinda, but you needed it. I pushed back the town meeting for you, the last one exhausted you." Jack rubbed his eyes and looked out the window. A serene landscape stared back at him, filled with rolling hills, cheerful trees, and a bright blue sky. This was Borbona, a small town in Italy. Back in the States, he and Sierra had gone to the same college. One thing had led to another, and since he didn't have to lie to her anymore, they had started dating. The urge to travel had overtaken the couple and after a tour of Italy they had decided to stay. They had traveled through different cities, and in the city of Paris they had gotten married. The city of love had won another couple, and the duo stayed long enough to learn of a tiny town called Borbona. It was tiny, only 660 people, but they had fallen in love with the quaint landscape. After settling in, Jack had run for mayor.

And _won_.

"Yeah, thanks Sie." He smiled, getting up and taking the coffee from her. "You really are the best." He told her, kissing her.

"I know." She replied, leading him to the kitchen. A plate of scrambled eggs waited from him, and he ate it gratefully. "Oh, and Antonio d'Aglo stopped by. He wants you to let him expand Borbona. That man is going to ruin Borbona! I can _tell_. All he cares about is money, he will _ruin_ this town if you don't stop him soon."

"Okay, thanks for telling me. What's today's date?" He asked, something fuzzy coming into mind. He was supposed to remember something, but what was it?

"Oh my sleepy pie, you really need more sleep. Today's the 23 of April."

"Oh my gosh, I forgot. I made a promise to some friends a while ago, I need to go back to the U.S."

"Excuse me?" Sierra asked surprised.

"Remember Miko and Raf from high school? We promised to meet up again in Jasper after twenty years, to see how everything turned out."

"Oh. Um, alright. Do you want me to come with you?" Sierra asked awkwardly.

"It's fine, you don't have to." Jack shook his head. "I have a favor to ask of you, can you run the the town for me? Please?"

"Of course I can. Um, I'll get that ticket for you." Sierra said, getting up to make a call.

"Do you want to go, Sie? You haven't seen your parents for awhile. All your friends?"

"No it's fine, you can go." Sierra said dismissively.

"No, you've gotta come Sie-Sie. You know you want to." He smirked.

"Maybe.."

"You want to, don't pretend you don't want to."

"But who'll run the town? And what about d'Aglo?"

"I'll let whoever's going to run the town worry about him. It's gonna be fine, Borbona'a going to be just like we leave it."

"You sure?" Sierra asked dubiously.

"Perfectly, I'll leave Maria Antonietta Di Gaspare in charge, she was the last mayor anyway. Go pack, we're going back to the states."


	2. All Roads Lead To Jasper

Raf sat in the plane staring out the window eagerly. It had been almost seventeen years since he had left his hometown, and now, after all these years he was coming back.

"We will be arriving in Jasper in ten minutes. We hope you enjoyed your flight, and like always, thank you for traveling on Airline One." The chipper flight attendant's voice called over the intercom system and Raf leaned back into his seat. His mind drifted to his friends. _Jack, Miko, I can't believe it's been _twenty _years! I wonder how they turned out?_ Raf wondered, but shook his head. Both Jack and Miko were smart, with Miko he sometimes wondered, but they were driven people, and Raf knew they would have gone far. Miko probably entered the music industry, and Jack...well, he wasn't sure about Jack. He buckled his seat belt as the plane began to descend minutes later, and then the plane landed. _It was so strange to be back after all this time,_Raf mused, _I wonder what's different._

"Welcome to Jasper! We hope you enjoy your stay." A voice called in the airport, and Raf smiled. That little welcome mantra hadn't changed since he was a boy. Yep, nothing much changed in Jasper. Raf got in a cab and gave the directions to his parents house. Even after all his pleading and wheedling, the Esquivel's never left Jasper. To them, this was home, and nothing would change that. His mom opened the door, and automatically started talking excitedly in Spanish, gushing and laughing and hugging her son happily.

"Welcome back!" She exclaimed. "I didn't know you were coming, what a surprise! Oh, my son, what has happened since you went away? How is your Mary? Tell me, tell me! Oh, Luca! Our son is home!" Rafael's mother cried excitedly, and Raf's father entered the room.

"Papa!" Raf cried happily.

"My son, my Rafael!" His father exclaimed happily. "How are you? How long can you stay?"

"For a few days, I'm meeting with some friends."

"Ah friendship. A bond that can never be severed." Mama smiled wisely. "Now tell me about Mary! How is my daughter-in-law?"

"Mary, she's fine." Raf began. "She's doing good. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you." He said, and then paused, planning to tease them.

"Yes? Yes?" Mama prompted.

"Nothing much."

"There must be more, you are holding out on your mother!"

"Mary's pregnant!" He finally said.

"Woo-hoo! This is fantastic!" Mama exclaimed, wrapping her son in a hug.

"Congratulations, Rafael." Her father grinned, hugging his son as well.

"Oh, me an abuela! Can you picture it? Oh, is it a baby boy or a girl? Tell me, you _must _tell me!" Raf's mom begged excitedly.

"A girl, we think we're going to name her Daphne." Raf told his parents proudly.

"Oh, praise God Almighty!" Her mom breathed. "A baby girl, how wonderful! Sweet little Daphne, such a pretty name."

"This is amazing." His dad agreed.

"Oh, I must go call my siblings, oh and _your_ siblings as well. This is wonderful news!" With that Raf's mom was running to the phone to tell absolutely everyone.

"So, what else have you been up to?" Raf's dad asked smiling.

"Nothing really. I've been working on expanding Protectia, we've been hiring more people and just got a contract with the Navy. What about you, papa?"

"Oh absolutely nothing. Jasper isn't exactly the liveliest of towns you know. Oh, did you know the town's building a new town hall? The old one was destroyed somehow. It looked like a giant had stepped on it or something! It was quite weird."

"I bet it was." Raf replied ruefully. He wondered which of his older friends had done it. He doubted Optimus could be that clumsy, and Arcee was always careful with her footsteps, Ratchet didn't usually leave the base, and that left Bulkhead to do the damage. "Sounds pretty weird."

"Well, it's about time they rebuilt that hall anyway. The old one was so, well, old. It's nice to have you back son, when do you have to go meet your friends?"

"Tomorrow morning at eight."

"Why so early?" His dad questioned.

"Well, we're meeting out in the desert. If we went any later it would be to hot." Raf explained, knowing how weird it would sound to his dad.

"Do I want to know why you're going to the _desert_ to meet these people? You do know you could just meet them at the diner around the corner."

"I know, but the desert holds some memories for us. It's kinda like our club house, don't worry it's not as weird as it sounds." Raf said hurriedly.

"I don't wanna know." His dad sighed, shaking his head and getting up. "Your mother's going to be making calls all afternoon, is there anything you want to do? Anything you want to see again?"

"I don't really care, anything you _want_ to show me?" Raf replied standing up as well.

"Let's go out and get lunch. How about Mel's? Great diner. Espe!" He suddenly shouted.

"What, Luca?" Raf's mom called back.

"Raf and I are going to Mel's, we'll be back later!" He shouted, grabbing his keys and walking out the door with Raf in tow.

"See ya later, Mom!" He shouted, shutting the door behind him. His dad got in the car and started the ignition once Raf had gotten in, and the duo drove off. Raf looked out the window eagerly. Just like he had thought, not much had changed in his absence. Jasper was one of those towns that just didn't change, no matter what.

"I can't believe we're back in Jasper!" Sierra exclaimed, stretching her arms above her head. The couple had just flown into the Jasper airport, and Sierra was gazing around in amazement. "_Nothing_ has changed! Jasper really is a stick in the mud place." She mused.

"Hey, at least we won't get lost." Jack joked.

"Like I could forget Jasper." Sierra smiled. "So where we want to go first? My parents, or yours?"

"How about we both go to our parents separately, and then bring them together? We never actually told your parents, or my mom, that we eloped and-"

"You're afraid my dad will kill you?" Sierra asked matter-of-factly. Sierra's dad was an ex-Navy Seal, he could kill you without blinking, and with one arm tied behind his back as well.

"Maybe." Jack said carefully.

"As long as daddy's little princess is happy, you have nothing to worry about!" Sierra smiled, but it faltered seeing Jack wasn't convinced. "Okay, I'll tell daddy on my own. You go see your mom, and we can all meet up at Mel's. Okay?" She said softly, hugging her husband.

"Thanks, Sie." Jack replied appreciatively.

"You do know one day you'll have to talk to him." Sierra told him, taking his hand and starting to walk toward the exit.

"Sure, but when I know your dad won't kill me."

"Oh Jack." Sierra laughed, and after Jack situated her in a cab he got in one himself and went towards his mom's house.

"Oh my gosh, _Jack_!" His mom exclaimed upon opening the door. "Come in, come in. How've you been? What have you been doing? _Where have you been? _I've been so worried about you, I didn't know where you went, or who you were with, or-"

"I got married." He said bluntly.

"Excuse me?" His mom gaped surprised.

"To Sierra." His mom didn't say anything for a moment, and then she enveloped him in a hug. "That's so great! When did you get married? _Why wasn't I invited? _Is she pregnant yet?"

"_Mom_." He said embarrassed.

"Oh sorry, but this is so wonderful! When did it happen?" His mother replied happily, sitting on the sofa and pulling her son down next to her.

"A few years ago." Jack said awkwardly.

"And I wasn't invited?" Ms. Darby screeched. "Oh Jack." She sighed.

"How've you been?" He asked nervously.

"This is just so amazing! I'm so happy for you, where's Sierra? I always knew you two would make a lovely couple."

"She's with her parents."

"Oh, you two should've come together. You let your wife face her father's wrath _alone_? Oh Jack, you have so much to learn. Get up, come on, let's go to the Farly's house."

"What?"

"We're going to the Farly's, _now_. Besides, I want to meet my in-laws." Ms. Darby said cheerfully, grabbing the keys and dragging her son to the car. "Have you seen Arcee lately?" His mom asked conversationally as they started driving.

"No, I've kinda been in Italy for the past ten years." Jack replied with a shake of the head.

"Oh, I would've thought she'd ground bridged to you over the years. Something like that friendship is hard to break. Wait, does _Sierra _know about the 'bots?"

"No, I never told her. I don't want her tangled up in everything, it's better she never knows."

"That's the truth. Here we are!" His mom smiled, pulling into the driveway. "They moved about five years ago." She explained getting out and going to know on the door.

"June! Welcome to the family!" Mrs. Farly exclaimed, hugging the nurse.

"Oh Michelle, you can't believe how excited I am! You remember Jack."

"Jack, why didn't you tell us?" Michelle demanded, hugging her new son-in-law.

"Hello Jackson." Andrew Farly said dryly, his daughter beside him.

"Since we're all together, I have an announcement to make." The red headed fireball spoke up, blushing happily.

"Come in, come in." Michelle said excitedly, and the whole family moved into the house.

"Well, I was going to tell you alone Jack, but since we're all together I might as well just say it."

"What is it? Is it what I think it is?" Mrs. Farly asked eagerly, getting everyone to sit down in the living room.

"Probably." Sierra smiled, leaning against Jack's side. Her fingers twined in his, and she smiled up at him. "I'm pregnant."

"That's amazing sweetie!" Ms. Farly exclaimed, rushing to her daughter's side.

"Jack, you're going to be a father!" His mom cried happily. "This is so sweet, when did you find out, Sierra?"

"A few days ago, I didn't exactly know how to tell you Jack. But coming home, it's made everything perfect!" Sierra smiled.

"Yes, why did you come back Jackson?" Mr. Farly asked calmly, his brown eyes drilling into Jack's blue ones.

"I made a promise to some friends a while ago. We all promised we'd come back to Jasper in twenty years, and so here I am."

"Keeping a promise, I like that. We might be civil to one another." stated.

"Andrew." Mrs. Farly smiled. "Be nice. I think it's sweet. When are you meeting them?"

"Tomorrow at eight." Jack replied easily. _Eight_ _a.m._ He thought, _eight a.m._

"Well, since we have the afternoon together we _must_ celebrate! There's this new restaurant in town, Elegance Defined, it would be perfect for a celebratory lunch." Michelle was saying. "Everyone who's anyone goes there. Let's go, we have so much to catch up on!" Mrs. Farly was saying.

"Definitely, oh this is just so great!" June agreed.

"The kids can take our car and we'll ride with you June, is that alright?" Michelle asked, grabbing her purse and heading for the door with everyone in tow.

"Perfect." June agreed.

"Do you mind if Andrew drives? He doesn't like letting anyone else chauffeur him around, he says it makes him feel weird. Oh, here you go Jack, my keys."

"Thanks Mrs. Farly."

"Oh we're family now! Call me Michelle, please."

"Um, okay...Michelle." The woman smiled and headed for the Darby car. "Well, that didn't go to bad."

"I told you so, you really should just listen to me." Sierra joked, getting into the passenger seat.

"Yeah, like you're always right." Jack laughed.

"I am!" Sierra laughed indignantly.

"You're the best, Sie." Jack told her truthfully, backing out of the driveway.

High up above the ground Miko was settling in for a long flight. Unlike normal fliers, Miko was going to get to America the long way. Any sane person would head east to get to the U.S.A faster, but instead Miko was flying west. She was taking the long flight, stopping in Kazakhstan, some city in France, traipsing over Greenland, through Canada, and finally arriving in Jasper, Nevada. Like anyone who knows Miko, she's not that normal. She would get back to Jasper in time, and this way she wasn't going to have to stay in Jasper when she had no where to stay.

"Welcome aboard Emirates! We hope you enjoy your flight." The airline attendant's voice called over the speaker.

"Oh I will." Miko sighed, sinking into her chair with a happy sigh.


	3. All Together Again

_They're late. _Raf thought worriedly, looking over the sands sadly. _They promised, they said they'd come... _Raf closed his eyes, and thought back to when Miko had made them promise. It had been the year Jack was going off to college, and the same year Miko's exchange student visa was up. Raf was going to be the last in Jasper, but Miko made them promise...

-_Flashback_-

_They were all at Jack's house, helping their friend pack for college. There wasn't much Jack was going to need, he was going to National University, NU, in California. _

"_I can't believe you survived high school!" Miko had laughed, sitting on his bed. "I thought I would die before it was finished!"_

"_Yeah, I am so glad it's finally over." Jack had agreed, nodding his head as he put a T-shirt in the bag._

"_I can't believe you're both going, I'm going to miss you guys." Raf had said miserably, looking at his feet as he sat down beside Miko. _

"_I'm going to miss you too, four eyes." Miko sighed, giving her friend a half hug. "But think about it this way, you won't have me dragging you into trouble anymore!"_

"_I doubt that." Jack had scoffed._

"_Yeah, you're probably right." Miko had nodded, seeming all wise and mature._

"_Look Raf, it's not like you can't call us." Jack had told the younger teen gently. "You remember my cell phone number right? Call anytime, okay? The same goes for Miko, she never says it but she'll miss you." _

"_Yeah, totally." Miko had smiled. "As long as you pay long distance." _

"_Yeah, sure." Raf had replied quietly. Miko sat still a moment, and seemed like she was thinking over something important._

"_Miko, you okay? You look like you're _thinking_." Jack had asked worriedly._

"_Like I never have an original thought." Miko had snorted. "I had an idea."_

"_Should we be afraid?" Raf asked Jack quietly._

"_I heard that!" Miko snapped. "It's a good idea."_

"_For once." Jack muttered, and Raf nodded._

"_How about this, we make a promise." Miko began, looking between both boys seriously. "I'm gonna bet we're all going to lose touch, it happens. I'll be back in Japan, Jack's headed to California, Raf to who-knows-where, it's going to happen eventually." She shrugged sadly. "So we're going to make a pact, a promise. In twenty years from now, when we're all older, maybe wiser, we'll all come back to Jasper. No matter where we go, what we end up doing, who we become, we'll all come back to Jasper. Agreed?" She asked solemnly. The boys just nodded with a smile. "We'll meet up in the desert, that a good spot?"_

"_The desert?" Jack asked dubiously._

"_The desert, that's where we spent most of our time anyway. Going through the desert to get to the base, going back through the desert to get back to town. Back and forth, back and forth." Miko said, moving her head back and forth sideways as she spoke. "We'll meet back together at mile marker 25. And since the twenty fifth is the mile, let's also make it the date. How about in April? Cool. And who knows? Maybe we could even drop back in at the base!" She grinned. _

"_So we promise?" Raf asked hopefully, liking Miko's idea._

"_I promise." Miko nodded._

"_Deal." Jack agreed._

"_It needs to be more binding than this." Miko sighed, biting her lip in thought. "I got it! I, Miko Nakadai, solemnly swear that twenty years from now, on April 25th I will return to Jasper, Nevada at the 25th mile marker."_

"_I, Jackson Darby, solemnly swear that twenty years from now, on April 25th I will return to Jasper, Nevada at the 25th mile marker."_

"_I, Rafael Esquivel, solemnly swear that twenty years from now, on April 25th I will return to Jasper, Nevada at the 25th mile marker."_

"_It's agreed." Miko had said with a small smile. "No matter what happens, unless we're dead, we'll meet back up again."_

"_See you then, I guess." Jack had laughed. _

"_See you then."_

-_End Flashback_-

Raf blinked, watching a dust cloud fill the air in the distance. It was headed toward mile marker 25, and Raf started to get excited.The vehicle coming toward him was a car, but Raf couldn't make out the driver. The car slowed, and the dust settled as the car stopped at mile marker 25. The driver got out, and Raf waved hopefully.

"Jack?" He called, shading his eyes from the early morning sun.

"Raf? Is that you?" Jack's voice called back as he shut the car door and started walking toward Raf.

"Yeah, it's me. Wow, you look different." Raf chuckled, taking in the faded jeans and bright red shirt with Italian writing across the front. Jack's hair had gotten shaggy since Raf had last seen him, and Jack was taller. But it was still him. His blue eyes were still gentle and kind, but Raf knew from experience those eyes could glare with the best of them.

"Wow, twenty years." Jack said quietly, nodding his head with a smile.

"Yeah, what have you been up to? I haven't heard anything from you since you got to Italy! And what happened between you and Sierra?" Raf asked, glad his friend was back.

"I'm the mayor of a small town called Borbona these days, it keeps me pretty busy. And Sierra and I got married." Jack grinned.

"That's so great, congrats!"

"Thanks, and Sierra says she's pregnant..."

"That's amazing!"

"And what about you Raf? Did you get your company off the ground?"

"Yeah, Protectia's alive and well. I did the American dream, I'm pretty well off and am doing what I love. Oh, and guess what, did I tell you I married Mary? And she's pregnant! This is just so amazing, I'm so glad everything worked out for us!" Raf laughed.

"That's great, we'll have to get the wives together someday, I bet Sierra and Mary would be good friends." Jack nodded in agreement. The duo waited for a few minutes, looking down the road for any sign of their Japanese friend.

"Have you heard from Miko? She wouldn't just blow us off." Raf said worriedly.

"I haven't." Jack replied quietly. "She said unless she was dead she would come..."

"Woo Hoo!" A voice screamed, and the two men turned startled to find a dune buggy coming flying over the sand. "This thing is so cool! Woo hoo!"

"And there's Miko." Raf laughed, and waited while the buggy came skidding to a stop in front of them.

"Oh my gosh! Jack! Raf! It's been forever! How are you guys? What have you been up to? You won't believe it, I have kids! Don't you dare snigger at me Jack, I am perfectly mature these days! Aw, I missed you two." Miko was saying, talking at high speeds as she hopped out of the buggy and ran to hug her friends. "Oh my gosh, wedding rings! Who did you marry? Do you have kids yet? I am so happy for you!"

"Whoa, whoa! Slow down, Miko!" Raf laughed, not being able to resist being affected by his energetic friend.

"Aw, you still have those dumb old glass." Miko sighed happily.

"Miko." Jack warned.

"What? It's not like you weren't thinking about it. Tell me _everything _that you've been up to." Miko demanded, plopping herself in the sand and patting the dirt beside her. Shrugging, Raf dropped down beside the talkative Japanese. _Some things never change._

"I started my own company. It's a kind of techie company, you know code cracking, hacking, manufacturing..."

"Dork alert." Miko snorted.

"Miko." Jack sighed, sitting down on Miko's other side.

"What?"

"It's fine Jack, I got used to that title a long time ago." Raf smiled, not minding in the least.

"So what else? Get to the wedding already!" Miko demanded.

"I moved to Washington D.C. To start my company, I thought it would be a perfect place if I decided to delve into the armed forces for clientele, and one of my friends signed me up for a _cooking_ class."

"So? Did you not learn to make pie or something?" Miko blinked.

"No it wasn't that, I'm a _terrible _cook. But Brent, the guy who signed me up, used _my _money as down payment for the class. I wasn't going to just waste the money." Raf sighed. "Everyone got a partner, and mine was a woman named Mary. She was a genius baker, me...not so much. She ended up having to come over to my house to teach me all the basics. One thing lead to another, and well we started dating."

"Aw, you fell in love." Miko cooed.

"Yeah, we got married, and now Mary's pregnant." Raf said, a goofy lovey dovey smile on his face.

"That's so sweet!" Miko breathed. "What about you Jack? Spill it."

"I married Sierra."

"Sierra? As in, mean cheerleader girl from high school Sierra?" Miko asked shocked.

"She's actually very nice." Jack said, defending his wife.

"If you say so." Miko shrugged disbelievingly. "Continue."

"We toured Europe together, and ended up in a small town in Italy called Borbona. We fell in love with the town, and decided to stay. Sierra pushed me to run for mayor, she said I was a natural leader. If only she knew the half of it." Jack snorted, remembering when he had to go to Cybertron, and every other thing in between.

"And?" Miko prompted.

"Well, I won. We moved in, we had fun, and now Sierra's pregnant."

"Aw, everyone's going to have babies soon! How sweet!" Miko giggled.

"You've heard about us, now what about you?" Jack questioned, turning the attention on Miko as he leaned back in the warm sand.

"Oh, I'm married and I have two boys, Souta and Haru." Miko replied easily. "I've been managing a rock band for the past five years, and my band hasn't left the top three in all my band managing years." Their friend said proudly.

"Knowing you, Miko, that's not a surprise." Jack said dryly.

"Thank you." She grinned. "Ooh, I forgot to tell you! I got a doctor's degree!"

"Excuse me?" Raf asked worriedly. Did her patients even know _who_ was treating them? Miko couldn't even get basic math right! Wrong prescription and poof! there goes her doctor's degree.

"You've got to be joking." Jack groaned.

"Well, I see what you think of me." Miko sniffed, pretending to wipe a tear away. "I went to school, I _passed_, and I decided to just do the band thing." She shrugged, and the two guys breathed a sigh of relief. _Miko _a _doctor_? The universe was laughing at them, that was all there was to it.

"So, what are we doing next? Why did I even suggest meeting in the middle of the _desert_? What was I thinking? Wow I was dumb back then." Miko said, wonderment in her voice at the idea of her being dumb.

"This is where owning my own company comes in handy." Raf grinned, getting up and going over the dune. Jack and Miko followed behind curiously. "Voila, meet 'copter, Protectia's private helicopter." Raf said, motioning toward the huge helicopter waiting docilely in the sand.

"_Sweet_!" Miko breathed.


	4. Suprise! We're Back!

It had been many years since the children had left the base. There was less chatter, less noise, less incessant questions, and Ratchet liked it that way. He admitted it was saddening to watch the children leave, one at a time and each going a separate way. Bumblebee had been reassigned to watch over Rafael after the boy had created his own company, and their company had decreased for awhile. But Bumblebee always returned when Optimus called, so the Autobots didn't worry that much about their yellow friend. Today, almost twenty years after all the children and them had parted ways, Optimus had called a scouting trip back into the Arctic. Ratchet didn't really see the point in it, the Arctic was lifeless, and no spark signal had been detected. But Optimus knew what he was doing, Ratchet just had to be patient and let Optimus explain his contemplations. Arcee had returned to the Arctic with their fearless leader and Bulkhead, leaving Ratchet by himself in the quiet headquarters.

"Ah, peace and quiet." He breathed, but then his processors picked up the sound of the elevator's gears turning. "That's odd, Agent Fowler didn't say he was coming today." He wondered aloud, but decided it would be best to let the agent explain himself in his own time so Ratchet turned back to his computer. The voice that met his processors though, _wasn't_ that of Agent Fowler's.

"Oh my gosh this place hasn't even changed!" A very familiar voice exclaimed. "Look, our little balcony's still here and everything!" Ratchet turned around, almost in fear at what he would see. "Oh hey Doc Bot!" Miko called out. Ratchet's mouth opened in shock. "Look! I left him speechless!" The Japanese giggled. It was her alright. Miko had aged considerably in the past twenty years, but a cheerful grin was still on her face and she was waving up to him happily. Flanking her was Rafael and Jack, both older and both grinning.

"Miko, Jack, Rafael..." He trailed off, not sure what to say.

"Aw, he still remembers us!" Miko spoke, heading to sit on the old sofa. "And you _still_ have our video games? Aw, that's sweet. Did you miss us Doc Bot?" She teased, holding up one of the controllers.

"Hmph."

"We missed you too, Ratchet." Jack said, looking up at the old medic with affection.

"How did...?" Ratchet trailed off speechless.

"Miko made us promise," Jack explained. "that in twenty years we would all come back to Jasper. It's been twenty years, and here we are."

"But- I mean-_how_?-wh-"

"Just say you missed us Ratchet." Rafael chuckled, grinning up at him.

"I...missed you children." Ratchet finally said gently, his processors still tumbling around in shock and surprise.

"We're not kids anymore, Ratchet." Miko spoke up. "We kinda grew up."

"Full fledged adults." Jack agreed.

"By the all spark." Ratchet breathed.

"Ratchet? Come in Ratchet." Optimus's voice called over the comm link.

"Children-"

"Adults." Miko interrupted.

"Adults." Ratchet conceded. "What do I tell the others? That you three were able to break into the base after all these years..."

"Technically, we didn't break in." Jack smiled.

"Yeah, we took the elevator." Raf laughed.

"Ratchet? You there?" Arcee's voice called.

"Don't tell them, Ratchet." Rafael said. "Just let us surprise them." He smiled, and Jack nodded. Ratchet's optics swiveled to Miko who simply held a finger over her lips.

"Okay then." He sighed, and then turned to the computer. "I'm here Optimus. What is your status?" He asked calmly.

"Our core temperatures are reaching the blue zone, we require the ground bridge." Optimus's strong voice called.

"Geez, what took you so long, Ratchet? I'm freezing my tail pipe off out here." Arcee grumbled. Ratchet turned to look at the children, er, _adults_, and Miko simply waved.

"I heard a, uh, _disturbance_." He said ruefully, and Miko gave him a thumbs up sign.

"Nothing is wrong, is it old friend?" Optimus asked concerned.

"Yeah, you're okay right?" Bulkhead asked worriedly.

"Just a shock, nothing to bad." Ratchet replied. "Firing up the ground bridge to your current location."

"Finally." Arcee sighed. Bright lights burst into life in the portal, and a second later three Cybertronians came ambling through. Ratchet's eyes turned carefully over to the adults, wondering what they were going to do. He needn't have worried. The kids were simply sitting on the sofa, Jack with his hands behind his head, Miko criss cross applesauce, and Raf slouching in his seat.

"Hey Arcee, how was patrol?" Jack began.

"Crush any 'cons, Bulk?" Miko added.

"Did you bring me back a snowball?" Raf finished, and all the children, _adults_, turned to look at the bots like this was just any normal day.

"What the?" Arcee gasped, her blaster popping out automatically, and looking at the adults sitting on the sofa like she was seeing ghosts. Which she really was.

"_Miko_?" Bulkhead asked surprised.

"Ratchet, how did...?" Optimus breathed.

"What? No hello for your favorite humans?" Miko giggled, looking up at them with her usual cheerfulness.

"Uh, hey?"

"Come on Bulk, it's been, like, twenty years! Is that all you can say to your favorite friend?" Miko laughed, getting up and going to the railing.

"Yeah Arcee, it's been _forever_, are you really going to keep pointing those guns at me?" Jack said, rolling his eyes.

"Hi Optimus! How've you been?" Raf quipped.

"Um, I have been well. What about yourself, Rafael?" Optimus replied, a gentle smile on his face.

"Ratchet? Explain." Arcee asked quietly.

"Arcee, we're right here. I think we can explain on our own." Jack sighed, rolling his eyes again.

"We made a promise twenty years ago, we would all come back to Jasper. It didn't matter how far away we lived, what we did, what we'd been doing, all we had to remember is that we would come back to Jasper after twenty years. It's been twenty years." Miko explained. "We all agreed we'd come back to see our friends again."

"And you guys are our friends too." Jack smiled. "We had to pop in to say hey."

"So hey." Raf laughed.

"Wow Jack, you grew up." Arcee said wonderingly.

"Yep, I'm married too."

"_Married_?"

"Yeah, Raf too."

"Rafael? You have a spark mate as well?" Optimus spoke surprised.

"Um-hm. But we call them wives." Raf explained.

"And they have babies on the way." Miko broke in excitedly. "Isn't it so sweet?"

"_Children_? You really have grown up." Ratchet said wonderingly.

"What about you Miko? What has my buddy been up to?" Bulkhead asked easily.

"Married, band manager of a rock band, and I have two kids." Miko said proudly.

"She's a creator. Oh Primus have mercy." Ratchet murmured.

"Hey!"

"It's so great to see you, Jack!" Arcee exclaimed. "You wanna go for a drive?"

"Sure, see ya later guys." Jack grinned, heading down the stairs as Arcee transformed into a harmless looking motorcycle. Jack gave a salute as Arcee zoomed away.

"You wanna go too, Miko? We can go anywhere." Bulkhead offered, and just then a bright yellow Camaro came rolling into the base.

"Bumblebee! How are you?" Miko cried, leaning over the railing to watch the Camaro transform. The surprised bot gave off a series of clicks and beeps, and Miko looked at Raf puzzled.

"He said, '_Miko? What are you doing here? _How _did you get in here? It's so good to see you again. Raf, what are you doing here? Is this what you said you forgot?'_"

"You _forgot_ about meeting us back here?" Miko shrieked, slapping Raf's arm in indignation. Bumblebee chirped again. "And what did he say now?"

"Bee asked '_We?_'."

"Yeah, 'we'. Jack's back in town too." Miko said. Bee beeped again, his optics widening in surprise.

"He's surprised that we're all back in town together." Raf translated to his friend.

"Yeah, I made the boys promise we'd all come back after twenty years. It's nice to be back." Miko smiled, breathing in the musty air of the base and then coughing. "Seriously, you need a window in here or something." She coughed, glaring at Ratchet.

"The government won't let us." Was the medic's grumbled reply.

"Let's head out, Bulk. I want to know _everything _that's been going on." Miko said, hopping down the stairs and heading toward the transforming bot. "How many 'cons have you smashed since I left?" She was asking eagerly as she slammed the door shut and the duo drove away.

"Rafael, it is good to see you again, but I must confer with Ratchet on the Arctic exploration."

"Course, Optimus." Raf replied, a little disappointed but keeping his spirits up.

"It was good to see you again." Optimus smiled, then turned to Ratchet all serious. Bumblebee came toward Raf, holding his hand out.

"Let's go." Raf grinned, hopping in his guardian's hand and waited while Bee transformed and started driving out. "It was so good to see everyone again." Raf grinned, looking back toward Ratchet and Optimus until they couldn't be seen anymore. Even though he had been allowed to keep Bee, he hadn't really been able to see the other bots. He had his busy schedule, and the Autobots had theirs. After a while, he had gotten used to the fact that they had all gone their own way. "So what do you think?" Raf finally asked.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming back to Jasper? That Jack and Miko were coming back too?" Bee questioned curiously.

"We decided we'd keep it a secret, that it would just be us three." Raf shrugged. "I was just keeping up my side of the deal."

"It's fine." Bee replied, turning onto the road heading to Jasper. In the distance Miko and Bulkhead were soaring over the sand dunes, and father ahead Arcee and Jack were doing a wheelie. "It looks like everyone's having fun."

"Yeah, so what do we want to do?"

"Let's race them." Bee said, and sent the challenge over the com link.

"Oh can we Bulk? We can totally scorch them!" Miko begged.

"In yours dreams, Miko." Arcee snorted.

"Yeah, Arcee's way faster than your three ton tank." Jack teased.

"Both of you are wrong, Bee and I will win." Raf laughed, and the three cars all converged on the road, stalling their motors as they decided what route to take.

"Can't go through Jasper, Boss wouldn't like that." Bulkhead rumbled.

"So that leaves, what? The desert?" Miko questioned.

"Guess so. It's going to be a sandy run." Arcee replied.

"From here to mile marker 25, it's about half way between her and town." Arcee suggested, and the humans started laughing. "What did I say?"

"What's so funny Miko?" Bulk asked.

"Raf? Why are you laughing?" Bee asked confused. What was so funny about 'mile marker 25'?

"Nothing, absolutely nothing!" Miko giggled, reigning in her laughter. "Let's race!"

"On your mark, get set, _go_!"


	5. All Things Must End

"_**You don't have to be afraid of change.  
><strong>__**You don't have to worry about what's being taken away.  
><strong>__**Just look to see what's being added." -Jackie Greer**_

Miko, Jack, and Raf were standing in a circle, talking, laughing, and hugging. A week had gone by, one filled of laughter and shaking heads, past friends and new ones, memories forgotten and new ones gained. It was an experience they would never forget, how could they? Even when Starscream passed by shouting threats he had smiled upon seeing 'The Autobots old pets', and they had just waved back as the whacky 'con flew away. It was a week they would never forget, filled with everything worth remembering.

"You have my number right? And my area code?" Miko was asking frantically, digging around in her purse for her phone number.

"Chill Miko, I have it." Raf laughed, rolling his eyes at Miko's craziness.

"You sure?" The Japanese faltered, pausing her excavation of her purse's insides to look at the tech geek.

"Of course we have it." Jack spoke, smiling at the old friend.

"You have mine right?" Raf asked Miko hopefully, knowing she would have already lost it by now.

"Um..."

"I'll write it out again." Raf sighed, pulling a piece of paper out of one of his carry ons to scribble down his phone number. _Again_.

"You really are the best." Miko breathed happily, taking the paper and losing it inside her purse. "I'm sure I still have yours Jack." Miko said with false bravado, wondering if she still actually had it... It wasn't _her_ fault she was so forgetful! Really!

"Here you go." Jack rolled his eyes, pulling out a business card with his name on it.

"Thanks, Jack. You know me so well." Miko laughed nervously, sticking the paper in her purse.

"Of course I do." Jack smirked, shaking his head.

"So, where you headed?" Miko asked Raf, as if she didn't know.

"It's time to get back to D.C., a company can't run itself you know." He joked, looking at her with a smile. "Besides, I miss Mary. I'm ready to get home."

"Aw, I'm so happy for you! And be nice to your wife, so what if the baby's name is Daphne? That's pretty, elegant, and simplistic."

"Like you know anything about that." Jack snorted.

"Hey!"

"What about you Jack? Headed to Italy?" Raf inquired.

"Yeah, I've got the same problem as you do. A town doesn't run itself. Besides, it's a bit more, uh, _quiet_ back in Borbona."

"You mean it doesn't have us making your life crazy." Miko replied dryly, but she was smiling.

"Maybe." Jack allowed.

"You headed back to Japan, Miko? Or are you off on some crazy adventure?" Raf asked, looking at his eccentric friend carefully.

"Pu-lease. I stopped acting like a five year old _many_ years ago. I'm a well mannered woman of society if you hadn't noticed."

"Uh huh, so where you going? And should I be waiting for your picture to come up on Interpol?" Jack asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Jack, how could you think so little of me?" Miko replied, mock wounded. "I would _never_ cause trouble, _never_."

"Sure." Raf spoke, not believing a word of it. Miko just smiled and clasped her hands in front of her like an angel.

"Now boarding flight 320 for New York City." An attendant called over the speaker.

"Well, I guess I better get going." Jack sighed, looking at his friends sadly. "Sierra's probably heading over now."

"Why are you headed for the great NYC? Why not just get on over to Europe?" Miko questioned, cocking her head sideways.

"Sierra wants to see New York City, it's got everything imaginable. Besides, Sierra and I want to see some of the sights before we jet away. You know everyone's always been saying New York is just so great and amazing, we want to go find out why. Have an adventure or two." Jack explained, a smile on his face.

"Okay, just promise me two things before you go." Miko replied seriously.

"Um, sure?"

"When you're in New York City, do _not _eat any meat from corner vender people. I had a cousin who had a hot dog from one of those corner food stands, and he got food poisoning."

"Deal."

"And second," Miko said, her gaze swiveling to include Raf. "In twenty years from now..." She trailed off, smiling her mysterious little smile.

"We come back?" Raf finished for her, a little unsure.

"We come back." She nodded. "Deal guys?" She grinned.

"Now boarding flight 329 for Washington D.C." Another attendant called over the speakers.

"Think fast, you both gotta get going." Miko said, and then started humming the Jeopardy theme song. "I, Miko Nakadai, swear that in twenty years from this exact date I will return to Jasper, Nevada. I will return to mile marker 25, and unless I'm dead, I will come." The two men cast a glance between them, and they both had to smile.

"I, Rafael Esquivel,"

"I, Jackson Darby,"

"swear that in twenty years from this exact date I will return to Jasper, Nevada." They chorused together. "I will return to mile marker 25, and unless I'm dead, I will come."

"Now boarding flight 390 for Tokyo."

"See you guys in twenty years!" Miko called, giving the guys one quick last hug before she picked up her bags and walked away. "You better be there!" She called over her shoulder, grinning her trademark smile and then she turned the corner and was gone.

"See ya then?" Jack asked.

"See ya then." Raf nodded, and giving the other a fist bump headed in opposite directions toward their flights.

~(0)~

High up in the air, Miko smiled as she watched two more planes take flight. _We're all going our own way. _Again._ Oh well, twenty years isn't to bad. I made it this far didn't I?_ Miko chuckled, settling down in her seat. _I'll seem them again, someday..._

-_**The End**_-  
>~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~<p>

"_**The world is round and the place which may seem like the end might also be the beginning." -Ivy Baker Priest**_


End file.
